On July 14, the movers and shakers of the city flocked to the Four Seasons Hong Kong for an exclusive preview of Argo, the hotel’s new cocktail bar, before it opened to the public the following day.
Replacing the Blue Bar on the ground floor and refurbished in a neo-classical style, Argo derives its name from the Greek myth of Jason and the Argonauts, who sailed in search of the legendary Golden Fleece. The opening marks a new era for the hotel, which underwent a transformation this year that also included new lobby café Gallery and a redesigning of its guest rooms.
Designed by Ed Ng and Terence Ngan of Hong Kong architecture firm AB Concept, Argo champions innovation in the world of fine drinking. The bar takes inspiration from the design of a conservatory with its large, curved ceiling decorations, and brings the outdoors in with plants inside hanging terraria, mounted insects and mirrors, with breath-taking views of Victoria Harbour.
Guests including Michele Li, Esther Sham and Leigh Tung Chou had fun celebrating the opening while enjoying the ambiance of their striking environment. “It was a fabulous evening. I caught up with so many friends and was happy just to be out,” said Michele Li, founder of The Wedding Company, who marvelled at the new venue. “The aesthetics and colours are fabulous. I especially love their beautiful private space tucked away at the back."
Bride-to-be Jessi Chloe Chen echoed the sentiment: “There were so many old familiar faces. It was quite nostalgic seeing everyone. I especially loved bumping into Michele, who is actually planning my wedding.”
Hosted by beverage manager Lorenzo Antinori, guests sipped on creative cocktails and tasted the bar’s custom-made Argo Gin, a collaboration with Australian maker Never Never Distilling Co. “Here Today, Gone Tomorrow”, Argo’s debut cocktail menu, featured ingredients that may be hard to source in the future due to environmental threats, including apple, cacao, vanilla, coffee, rice, and honey, which is sourced from Argo's own beehive at HK Raw Honey bee farm in the New Territories.
